Comparison

Dinosaur Chess vs Stack the States® 2

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Dinosaur Chess

Learn and play chess with an engaging, non-intimidating approach. Features interactive lessons, mini-games, puzzles, and play against animated dinosaurs. Progress from beginner to advanced tactics.

Highlights
  • Interactive chess lessons
  • Mini games and puzzles
  • Play against animated dinosaurs
  • Chess tactics lessons
  • Progressive difficulty levels
  • Multi-student support
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

** Appysmarts.com: 97/100 EDITOR'S FAVORITE! ** Previously nominated for a BAFTA (Best Interactive Media)! ** ** Featured by Apple in it's "New & Noteworthy" section! ** ** No Ads. No In-App-Purchases ** ** Universal App optimized for iPad, iPhone. Retina Graphics. Dinosaur Chess is the fun way to learn and play chess. Designed to be non-intimidating: -- Learn how to play chess with 11 bite-sized interactive lessons. -- Over 20 mini games and puzzles. -- Play simplified and full chess against 6 beautifully animated dinosaurs. -- Entertaining and challenging. -- Learning and playing chess encourage concentration, improves cognitive abilities and rational thinking. -- Can now play as a Boy Student or as a Girl Student. -- Multi-student support For more advanced learners: -- 8 chess Tactics lessons. -- The 'Amazing Chess Tactics Machine' game to practice chess tactics/puzzles. -- Chess Engine can be set to Easy/Medium/Hard Sign up to Professor MacDinosaur's chess class. You will grow from a hatchling, fresh from the egg, to a huge dinosaur ready to take on the Trex. The action takes you through different parts of the dinosaur's world from jungles to forests. Here you learn the chess skills that will help you grow enough to defeat the other dinosaurs in battle. ________________________________ Some Reviews: *Excellent step by step approach by Jurassienne_Dole Lots of examples of the basic moves and tactics and some amusing side games involving dinosaurs. Fun for kids and adults alike and plenty of challenges at all levels. *Dinosaur Chess by Mls968 This is a great program. The lessons are interesting, and play levels go from easy to difficult. My 4 and 6 year olds are learning the game, and it's helping novice players like my wife and I too. Highly recommended to anyone who wants to introduce their children to chess! *An excellent app by Adg6 A wonderful app. Ideal for anyone new to chess. It is even fun for experienced chess players. *Highly Recommended - by doled "This is a fantastic chess teaching game. This game alone makes it worth buying an iPad. My three year old now knows the piece names and basic moves. My six year old is well on her way to playing a full game. Our family has had an iPad since the day the iPad was released and this is one of the best apps we have." *Great! - by TonySchleizer "This game has gotten my 5 year old interested in chess. Great tutorials that get progressively harder as skills improve." * Great for getting started - by Milfordthelargebonedgorilla "This has been fantastic for my five year old son...using this in addition to a real board and pieces has helped him immensely in understanding each of the pieces, how they move, their strengths and weaknesses...a terrific way to introduce young ones to the game without overwhelming them" * Great learning tool - by Triplescoop "I have an adopted 7 year old boy with fetal alcohol syndrome. It is very hard for him to learn to play games. Checkers was very hard for him to learn. I thought that chess would be something that he would have to wait to learn. I bought this app even though there were no reviews. So glad I did! What a great teaching tool! I love the mini games that teach the directions that each piece can move. We play slowly but my son can play chess! I recommend this for anyone who wants to learn the basics of the game. This app is for beginners. Great for kids! Thank you to the developers of this app!" *Super! - by Chess player "Hats off to the developers. A fun program for kids." *Ideal For kids - by Kingkot "This game is ideal to teach the kids in the chess."

About

Stack the States® 2

Learn US geography by stacking animated states to win levels. Collect all 50 states to unlock bonus games and explore an interactive 3D map with detailed information about capitals, cities, and landmarks. Designed for fun and educational play for all ages.

Highlights
  • Interactive 3D map
  • Learn state capitals, cities, shapes, landmarks, and flags
  • Collect all 50 states
  • Unlock bonus games (Map It, Connect 2, Capital Tap)
  • Voice mode for independent play
  • Hundreds of unique questions
  • Multiple player profiles
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Watch the states come to life as you learn US geography! Stack the States® is back and better than ever with new question types, new bonus games, voice mode, 3D graphics and a detailed interactive map! As you learn state capitals, cities, shapes, landmarks, flags and more, you can actually touch, move and drop the animated states anywhere on the screen. Carefully build a stack of states that reaches the checkered line to win each level. You earn a new state for every successfully completed level. All of your states appear on your own personalized map of the United States. Try to collect all 50! As you earn more states, you begin to unlock the free bonus games: Map It, Connect 2 and Capital Tap. Four games in one! What’s new in Stack the States® 2: - New question types - New bonus games: Connect 2 and Capital Tap - New voice mode that helps non-readers play independently - Brand new interactive map featuring major cities and a 3D elevation view of each state - Beautiful 3D graphics - 10 different 3D scenes depicting various locations in the US - 3D models of over 90 US landmarks Plus, all the great features that you loved from the original Stack the States®: - 50 flash cards — one for each state - Hundreds of unique questions - Up to six player profiles - A personalized map of the US - Fun sound effects and music - Works on both iPhone and iPad - a universal app Stack the States® 2 is an educational app for all ages that's actually FUN to play. Try it now and enjoy four games for the price of one! PRIVACY DISCLOSURE Stack the States® 2: - Does not contain 3rd party ads. - Does not contain in-app purchases. - Does not contain integration with social networks. - Does not use 3rd party analytics / data collection tools. - Does include links to apps by Dan Russell-Pinson in the iTunes App Store (via Performance Horizon). For more information on our privacy policy please visit: http://dan-russell-pinson.com/privacy/

Screenshots

Dinosaur Chess4 screens
Stack the States® 24 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Stack the States® 2 at 4.5 against Dinosaur Chess's 3.8. Stack the States® 2 also leads on review sentiment (86% vs 59%) and ratings volume (1.1K vs 38). Dinosaur Chess's advantage is iOS requirement (8.0 vs 12.0). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Dinosaur Chess costs $4.99 and Stack the States® 2 $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Stack the States® 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Stack the States® 2 has 1.1K ratings behind it against 38, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 59% of Dinosaur Chess's written reviews are positive against 86% of Stack the States® 2's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dinosaur Chess ships an update every 16 months, Stack the States® 2 every 9 months. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Dinosaur Chess versus Stack the States® 2: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDinosaur ChessStack the States® 2
Price$4.99$2.99 — better
Rating3.8 (38 ratings)4.5 (1.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews59.0% of reviews86.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings381.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 16 monthsEvery 9 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#171#37 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size34 MB140 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperUniversis TechnologyFreecloud Design, Inc.

Customer experience

Dinosaur Chess

All ratings38 ratings
Positive68.4%
Neutral5.3%
Negative26.3%
Written reviews78 reviews
Positive59.0%
Neutral9.0%
Negative32.1%

Stack the States® 2

All ratings1,144 ratings
Positive87.4%
Neutral4.5%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews140 reviews
Positive86.4%
Neutral7.1%
Negative6.4%

Bugs and requests

Dinosaur Chess

Reported bugs

7 issues
  • No audio/sound issues reported consistently over many years
  • App crashes frequently, especially at the end of games
  • Pieces disappear or change randomly
  • Game freezes
  • Cannot save progress
Show 2 more
  • Board jitters during lessons
  • Valid moves misread, causing error sounds

Requested features

8 requests
  • Provide developer contact information
  • Add a two-player mode
  • Allow skipping learning modules
  • Separate profiles for multiple users
  • Option to turn off music
Show 3 more
  • Make Kindle app version available
  • Turn off hint and move-back features
  • More accurate finger placement for moves

Stack the States® 2

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Dinosaur Chess

No in-app purchases

None

Stack the States® 2

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Dinosaur Chess free?
Dinosaur Chess costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Stack the States® 2 free?
Stack the States® 2 costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Dinosaur Chess or Stack the States® 2?
Stack the States® 2 is rated higher. Dinosaur Chess averages 3.8 out of 5 from 38 ratings, while Stack the States® 2 averages 4.5 from 1.1K ratings.
Do Dinosaur Chess or Stack the States® 2 have ads?
Neither Dinosaur Chess nor Stack the States® 2 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dinosaur Chess or Stack the States® 2?
Dinosaur Chess ships an update every 16 months, and Stack the States® 2 every 9 months. Most recently, Dinosaur Chess was updated on October 29, 2026 and Stack the States® 2 on October 29, 2026.
Which is more popular, Dinosaur Chess or Stack the States® 2?
Dinosaur Chess currently peaks at #171 in the App Store charts, and Stack the States® 2 at #37. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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